Wants Appeals Court To Okay Suit Against Port Authority For Toll Hike

In his brief, Weisshaus sets forth the argument that charging a $2 penalty for payment in cash is "economic discrimination."

[New Jersey]

A New Jersey man today filed a brief to restore the lawsuit he filed last year challenging an increase in tolls to $12 from $8.

In a 78-page brief filed Tuesday, Yoel Weisshaus lays out to the Court ofAppeals for the Second Circuit his case as to why the district courtmust allow him to pursue his case against the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, challenging the increase in toll prices.

Weisshaus is seeking declaratory and injunctive relief to prohibit the PortAuthority from increasing toll prices without legislators' approval. In his brief, Weisshaus shares an in-depth look at his case against thebyzantine agency. "One wonders how many of its own laws the PortAuthority violated when they increased the toll on September 18, 2011,"Weisshaus observes.

The case is now before the Court ofAppeals for the Second Circuit waiting to be submitted before a panel of three judges. The Port Authority claimed that New York and New JerseyGovernors directed the price schedule in the increase of tolls. However, in his legal brief, Weisshaus reveals a letter from GovernorAndrew Cuomo’s office stating that they do “not posses records” ofcommunicating with the Port Authority over an increase in toll prices.

Appearing on behalf of himself, Weisshaus filed a lawsuiton September 19, 2011 a day after the Port Authority increased toll prices from $8 to $12. Inhis complaint, Weisshaus charged the Port Authority with "abuse of power and invasion of fundamental rights by increasing toll prices absent due consideration to the public."

The Port Authority responded by calling Weisshaus a man with “a good deal of Chutzpah.”

Weisshaus is asking the Court to declare that toll should not be used for petprojects unrelated directly to maintaining transportation such asrebuilding the World Trade Center.

In a similar lawsuit, theNew York Automobile Club, AAA, summonsed the Port Authority to Courtover using toll revenue to rebuild the World Trade Center. AAA’s request for preliminary injunction was rejected because they failed to seekdiscovery to counter the evidence submitted by the Port Authority.Interestingly, Judge Richard Holwell who presided over the AAA case resigned the following day of his order and is no longer a jurist,Weisshaus notes. AAA’s case was submitted for summary judgment and isnow going through discovery.

According to his brief, Weisshaus argues that unlike AAA where the district court recognized a valuablecause of action, the district court dismissed Weisshaus "sua sponte"--spontaneous-- for failure to state a claim. In his brief, Weisshaussets forth the argument that charging a $2 penalty for payment in cashis "economic discrimination."

Weisshaus is a resident of NewMilford NJ and is currently attending Bergen Community College for anaccounting degree. ,Weisshaus’ family is originally from Brooklyn. Hesays his weekly visits there, including with his grand mother GizzellaWeisshaus, is "deeply affected by the decision of the Port Authority toincrease toll prices without proper justification."